With the by-elections in Seoul and Busan over, workers get busy cleaning up the remains of the election campaigns.  Thousands of campaign banners and posters were installed throughout both cities during the campaign. After the results are announced, public workers get ready to take them down, signaling an end to the by-elections. Two public servants are hard at work removing campaign banners on the streets near Jamsilsaenae Station and Ihwa-dong in Seoul for disposal. By Gha Hee-sun (li

The South Korean military added two more novel coronavirus infections, the defense ministry said Saturday, amid growing concerns of another big wave of the pandemic in the country. An Army official in Icheon, 80 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and a soldier in the capital tested positive for COVID-19, according to the ministry. Some 190 people who had contact with the official have all tested negative, it said. The soldier was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 through his family members.

The South Korean government has issued revised guidelines on handwritten entry logs required at small businesses like restaurants for contact tracing purposes, as part of efforts to boost the use of encrypted personal numbers. In February, the government rolled out the encrypted data service to better protect privacy, but it has been slow to take off, in part due to lack of public awareness campaigns. The revised guidelines, released earlier this week, strongly recommend that people use their

The US Forces Korea (USFK) has completed vaccinating nearly half of its population against the novel coronavirus as it also decided to lower its health protection condition (HPCON) level in other regions in the country. "USFK has currently vaccinated more than 47 percent of its affiliated community," USFK said in a press release issued Friday. USFK began the vaccination campaign with the Moderna vaccine in December, starting with health care workers, and received Johnson & John

An annual lantern parade celebrating Buddha's birthday will be canceled for a second straight year amid the new coronavirus pandemic, the South Korean Buddhist community said Saturday. The Buddhist community here usually holds a three-day lantern lighting festival, called "Yeondeunghoe" in Korean, ahead of Buddha's birthday. A parade across downtown Seoul is a key event of the festival. But this year, the parade has been canceled along with some other events due to concerns over a re

One in four Seoul citizens turned to "revenge spending" to make up for missed shopping during the coronavirus pandemic, a study has shown. According to a Wednesday report by the Seoul Institute, a think tank for the Seoul metropolitan government, 24.3 percent of those surveyed in the first quarter said they had spent more than usual on certain goods due to pent-up demand during COVID-19 isolation. About a third, or 30.2 percent, said their revenge spending happened in the fourth quar

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the high 600s for the second straight day Saturday as health authorities warn that the country may be at the start of a fourth wave of infections. The country reported 677 more COVID-19 cases, including 662 local infections, raising the total caseload to 108,945, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The tally is slightly larger than 671 on Friday but marked a fall from a three-month high of 700 new cases Thursday. Th

Two Burmese democracy activists speak out on the unrest in the Southeast Asian country

A man who allegedly intruded into a home and killed three women after stalking one of them was unmasked in front of the press Friday morning, following a rare police decision to disclose his personal details. The Nowon police station in northeastern Seoul sent Kim Tae-hyeon, 24, to the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors’ Office on charges of murder, theft, housebreaking, consistent harassment and violation of information and communication network laws. Kim said he felt “guilty for

JEONJU -- The prosecution on Friday sought an arrest warrant for the founder of cash-strapped budget carrier Eastar Jet on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust. Lee Sang-jik, an independent lawmaker, is suspected of colluding with a senior company official, who was indicted in February for causing about 43 billion won ($38.47 million) in financial damage to the airline by paying off long-term loans early and underselling company shares to a specific subsidiary. The prosecution in Jeonju

Calls are growing for South Korea to institute a nationwide sickness benefit program as the criticism remains high over the effectiveness of the recently introduced vaccination leave policy. Labor activists argue for legislative support to help many workers who would be still obliged to continue to work even when reporting adverse symptoms after taking their shots, which could be helped with the introduction of the sickness benefit program. At the moment, the Korea Institute for Health and Soc

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 700 on Friday, but health authorities warned the country may face a stronger wave of the pandemic, with a chance that daily infections could double in the coming weeks. The country plans to suspend the business of clubs and bars in the greater Seoul area and the second-largest city of Busan for the next three weeks as part of targeted antivirus measures, while extending the current level of social distancing rules. The country reported 671 m

South Korea said Friday it will retain its current social distancing measures for another three weeks, including the ban on gatherings of five or more people nationwide, amid spiking virus cases. But as part of measures to curb cluster infections at risk-prone facilities, the operations of bars and nightclubs will be prohibited in the greater Seoul area and the second-largest city of Busan for the next three weeks, according to health authorities. The country's new distancing rules and antivir

SEJONG -- South Korea is not considering using Chinese COVID-19 vaccines, according to the minister of health and welfare on Thursday. Kwon Deok-cheol, who assumed the ministerial post at the peak of the winter wave in mid-December, told a socially distanced press conference that while the country is striving to secure more vaccines, those made by Chinese companies Sinovac and Sinopharm are not among the options being considered. “We’re working to ensure our goal of herd immunit

Delivery workers threatened Thursday to end doorstep delivery for customers living at a massive apartment complex in eastern Seoul, in protest against a rule that requires delivery trucks to use only underground parking spaces. In a press conference held in front of the complex that houses 5,000 apartment units, the workers' union, associated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the country's second-largest labor group, denounced the measure, calling it "unilateral" and inco